BELGRADE: Serbia's government collapsed on Saturday and early elections loomed as pro-Western President Boris Tadic and nationalist Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica faced off over Kosovo and EU integration.

Kostunica said his cabinet would meet on Monday to formally dissolve parliament and urged Tadic to call new elections for May 11, the same date as existing municipal polls.

"The government of Serbia has no united policy any more on an important issue related to the future of the country, Kosovo as a part of Serbia," Kostunica told reporters in Belgrade.

"Such a government could not function any more. This is the end of the government and we should return the mandate to the people," he said.

Tadic rejected Kostunica's attempts to frame the crisis around Kosovo and said the real issue was whether or not Serbia chooses to continue along the path to full membership of the European Union.

I can’t really say one way or another if Serbia should join the EU, I don’t know if that is in Serbia’s long term best interests or not.

I will say that a split front in Serbian Political leadership at the moment is a huge mistake, one that may be too difficult to overcome to do much of anything constructive about Kosovo’s Unilateral Declaration of Independence, the last time one of those was used it was Rhodesia, and it failed...badly...

Yep. It is a clusterfock. Round she goes, where she stops, nobody knows. I simply predict that Russia will have more oomph on the outcome than either we, NATO, or the UN will have. Go Russkies (can hardly believe I said that).

Thank you, traitorous morons in the State Department who couldnt wait to rush out your support of an independent Kosovo.

I don't pretend to know anything about Balkan politics. However, I have a Bosnian doctor who works for me. He described the Serbs as a group who wants to run everyones lives, he said they want everyone to work to support them and they want to hold power exclusively. When he asked me about American party politics, I told him to think of Democrats as Serbs.

7
posted on 03/08/2008 7:55:00 PM PST
by outofstyle
(There's a rake at the gates of Hell tonight)

The Serbian Radical Party (SRS) the single strongest force in the Serbian parliament, accounting for 81 of the 250 seats -- was upbeat at the latest developments as it expected a good showing in any new polls. "We expect to win these elections and take responsibility for leading the country," SRS leader Aleksandar Vucic told the media.

They are the drunks who burned the U.S. Embassy.

8
posted on 03/08/2008 7:56:26 PM PST
by HAL9000
("If someone who has access to the press says something over and over again, people believe it"- B.C.)

In the past, I have been in that same vein; but now, it is Serbs vs. muzzzzzlimz; in that equation, it is muzzzlimz 50 shades of evil beyond any evil Serbs ever conceived. Go Russkies (can't believe I said that).

I would point out that it wasn't the U.S. who caused the Serbian government to fall; the question was membership in the E.U. The nationalists didn't want to join the E.U. because some member states recognized independent Kosovo.

Well, what can we do now? Withdraw diplomatic recognition and replace it with one of the Taiwan-like deals to deal with the Kosovo government? I still think autonomy within Serbia was the best overall deal.

18
posted on 03/08/2008 8:19:02 PM PST
by GAB-1955
(Kicking and Screaming into the Kingdom of Heaven!)

Please, please, please, someone give me and example of a conflict in todays world that doesnt involve the ROP? A moment of mayhem and insanity without the religion of allah involvement would be nice. ;-)

19
posted on 03/08/2008 8:40:47 PM PST
by doc1019
(God is in control ... not Global Warming.)

I have noticed a fair amount of treason on these Balkan threads. It is no wonder God has punished them with almost 1500 years of continuous massacre. The last good government they have had were the Roman Emperors.

34
posted on 03/08/2008 10:40:28 PM PST
by Lucius Cornelius Sulla
(For what do we live, but to make sport for our neighbours, and laugh at them in our turn?)

The fact is that many posters on Balkan threads are posting as partisans of one or another of these states, and are making few arguments from the point of view of US national interests. That is obvious from their emotional, often obscene, sometimes scatalogical (as in your case) postings.

36
posted on 03/08/2008 10:57:55 PM PST
by Lucius Cornelius Sulla
(For what do we live, but to make sport for our neighbours, and laugh at them in our turn?)

Only Serbia/Kosovo are left. EU tells Milosavec to let Kosovo go and join EU socialists. This conniving has been going on since before EU socialists convinced Klintoon to do their dirtywork on Milosavec.

The problem is that US "interests" in the region are a paradox with regards to the WOT.

US interests do not justify it's criminality, if the US wishes to continue supporting terrorists who seek to kill Americans then perhaps the US' interests are ilconceived and Americans with the intellectual capacity beyond that of your average trailer trash would recognize a stupid foreign policy decision and tell the government that it has indeed recognized it as such and to tell the government to stop engaging in said policy.

Simply put, the US is governed for the people by the people and if the elected officials continue to conduct policy against the interests of its own constituency, then just maybe it has no one else to blame the next terrorist attack on it's own soil except on the government itself. Piss on American "interests" if it wants to shoot itself in the foot.

The US is a representative republic. The people elect the government, and the government governs in what it considers to be the best interests of the people. The people are free to judge these decisions on election day. The people who disagree can argue to change the policy or to change the government at the next election. Efforts to give aid and comfort to the enemies of the US (as determined by the government) is treason.

39
posted on 03/09/2008 12:27:43 AM PST
by Lucius Cornelius Sulla
(For what do we live, but to make sport for our neighbours, and laugh at them in our turn?)

The choices we have on election day are due to the choices freely made bt the American electorate. Those of us who disagree are partly responsible because our strategy and our efforts failed to nominate a better man. Our legal obligation not to aid and comfort the enemy is as strong as ever.

42
posted on 03/09/2008 3:22:21 AM PDT
by Lucius Cornelius Sulla
(For what do we live, but to make sport for our neighbours, and laugh at them in our turn?)

Don’t even waste your time. The same trailer trash you speak of are the ones you argue against. It’s apparent their mindset is the same of the politicians who could give a rat’s a$$ about what this country’s principles were...and how we’ve blindly ignored them.

44
posted on 03/09/2008 3:30:47 AM PDT
by Serb29
("A nation that expects to be ignorant and free, it expects what never was and never will be")

We, as Americans, have a duty to our country. We are obligated to use our best judgment to evaluate every angle of our country’s actions, and if necessary, stand up and react to the wrong ones. If some people in this forum have deemed it necessary to say that we are on the wrong side of this battle, that is their right. That is what separates us from the others. That is what makes this country great. If you want to join the side of Islam, which in my opinion should not even be regarded as a true religion, so be it. That is your right. Forgive us if we don’t see it the same way.

45
posted on 03/09/2008 3:41:29 AM PDT
by Serb29
("A nation that expects to be ignorant and free, it expects what never was and never will be")

“Efforts to give aid and comfort to the enemies of the US (as determined by the government) is treason.”

Well, I guess you are unaware that the KLA is a terrorist organization, and the “Fort Dix Six” were mainly comprised of Kosovar Albanians. Serbs have never tried to go up against our country, only defend their own. So according to you, it’s our gov’t that is guilty of treason....and I agree.

46
posted on 03/09/2008 3:48:11 AM PDT
by Serb29
("A nation that expects to be ignorant and free, it expects what never was and never will be")

The choices we have on election day are due to the choices freely made bt the American electorate.

The campaign funding creates the choices the people are allowed to make. When those choices end up being all the same, we do not have a Republic that Represents the people. We have a Republic that represents the campaign funding. Unfortunately, the solutions to this mess are not easy, thus the mess persists.

Our legal obligation not to aid and comfort the enemy is as strong as ever.

So who is your enemy in this case ? Serbians ? Orthodox Christians ? If they are your enemy, then the Kosovo Muslims must be your ally. Personally, I see no foe or friend there. Just a country and a people getting screwed for god knows what geopolitical justifications.

The U.S. national interest? Everything the U.S. has done in the Balkans since 1991 runs contrary to that interest (whatever the heck it is!). It boils down to appeasing the world's Muslims at the expense of Christians and pleasing the Real Boss - Riyadh. Two-bit State Dept 'diplomats' have hijacked America's foreign policy and are sowing the seeds of yet another bloodletting in the Balkans.

Everytime the foreigners start meddling, a war breaks out. The peoples of the Balkans are no less civilized than you, Mr. User of Pompous Nicknames.

The people who disagree can argue to change the policy or to change the government at the next election.

You still believe that? You're way too optimistic, Sulla. "The people" NEVER mattered. What *they* think is irrelevant. Certainly, no U.S. government will ever fall over what it's done in the Balkans...or elsewhere in the world. Nixon went down over Watergate, not Vietnam.

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